Johnny Manziel was 6-for-17 passing for 83 yards and a TD in his final preseason action. / Ken Blaze, USA TODAY Sports

by Lindsay H. Jones, USA TODAY Sports

by Lindsay H. Jones, USA TODAY Sports

CLEVELAND - In Johnny Manziel's last chance to run the Cleveland Browns' full offense before taking a seat behind Brian Hoyer when the regular season starts, he gave Browns fans a glimpse at what they might see whenever it is he takes over as starter.

Manziel led an exciting second-quarter touchdown drive in which he completed two passes in classic Manziel fashion - ducking away from defenders, scrambling out of the pocket and throwing a couple strikes.

The second such play, a completion near the end zone to veteran Nate Burleson, set the crowd at FirstEnergy Stadium into a frenzy, as did the touchdown pass a play later. There were other times when Manziel took off running, either on a designed read-option play, or when he decided to take off running, sliding and diving, flashbacks to what made Manziel so electric at Texas A&M and one of the most intriguing rookies in his class.

"Falls into the category of Johnny being Johnny. A couple of those plays were, 'No, no, no, yes," but that's what he does. That, to me, is what he brings to the table," head coach Mike Pettine said at halftime. "He just needs to get more comfortable in his reads, take the easy throws that are there. He's certainly shown why he has the reputation that he does."

Browns fans were happy, sure (or maybe they were just relieved?) to see Hoyer lead a touchdown drive in his one series of work in the first quarter. But Manziel was captivating, even as he showed several times why moving forward with Hoyer in September is still the Browns' safest decision.

Manziel was indecisive on a play early in the second quarter, leading to a sack and fumble, and had some issues with his accuracy. He missed wide receiver Charles Johnson on a dangerous high throw over the middle and had a couple of other passes fall short of his targets.

Manziel, who entered the game late in the first quarter and played one series into the third quarter, finished the game 6-for-17 passing for 83 yards. He also rushed four times for 55 yards. He led just the one touchdown drive. Two drives ended in field goals, another ended in a punt, and one ended after a fumble by tailback Terrance West.